spaghetti with marscapone, meyer lemon, spinach and hazelnuts

When I saw this recipe on the Kitchn there was no question what we were having for dinner. I mean, creamy cheese, tart meyer lemon and crunchy warm hazelnuts? It kind of sounded like heaven. It was made even better due to the fact that the fine folks over at oh nuts! had just sent me a big old bag of tasty shelled hazelnuts. There's very little preparation involved with this recipe, which makes it great for a weeknight dinner. You can really make the whole thing while the pasta is cooking.. it's that easy. When the pasta is not quite done, drain it, reserving some of the water, and add the marscapone mixture. Incorporate the spinach in the mix and let everything cook together for a few minutes. The result is just as delicious as I imagined it would be. The flavors all work together so well, you don't really taste one individual flavor. Rather the textures play a big role, the soft creamy marscapone cheese coats the pasta and provides a base for the crunch hazelnuts to hold onto. Its warm and rich and perfect after a long, cold day. Spaghetti with Marscapone, Meyer Lemon, Spinach and Hazelnuts from the kitchn | serves two as a main course 1 teaspoon Meyer lemon zest (from about 1/2 lemon) juice from one Meyer lemon (about 1/4 cup) 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese 1/2 teaspoon salt a few grinds of fresh pepper 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg 1/2 pound spaghetti 5 cups (loosely packed) fresh spinach, washed, spun dry, and roughly chopped 1/2 cup chopped, toasted hazelnuts 1 Combine the zest, lemon juice, mascarpone, salt, pepper, and nutmeg in a bowl. Whisk to combine. 2 Bring a pot of water to boil and salt generously. Cook the pasta until al dente, taking it off the heat about 1 to 2 minutes before you would normally remove it. Drain, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta water. 3 Return the pasta to the pot, and set over low heat. Stir in the mascarpone sauce. Add the spinach and toss so that the spinach begins to wilt. Add about 1/4 cup of the pasta water (more if necessary) to keep the sauce fluid but not too watery. 4 Continue to cook and toss until the spinach is cooked. Add the hazelnuts and stir to combine. Serve immediately.
Filed under dinner and eat by Kelly. . 7 Comments
  1. Esi Says:

    February 24th, 2009 at 3:00 pm

    I have been thinking about this recipe for a while. Glad to know it tastes as wonderful as it looks!

  2. samantha hahn Says:

    February 24th, 2009 at 6:04 pm

    ummm hello….this was made for me. This looks soo sooo good. Please get your archive going so I can start saving all of these incredible recipes. I’ll have to copy and paste this one into a must-do folder!

  3. Whitney Says:

    February 24th, 2009 at 9:29 pm

    I made pasta tonight but it wasn’t nearly as yummy as that looks. I really need to pick up some meyer lemons. My BF’s parents have a few trees in their house, I really wish I had the space for one in my Chicago apt.

  4. finsmom Says:

    February 24th, 2009 at 9:55 pm

    I am adding this to next week’s dinner list – it looks amazing! Thanks for sharing! Great pics and site!

  5. Megan Says:

    February 25th, 2009 at 1:07 pm

    I tried this last night and it was fantastic! I substituted Macadamia nuts for the hazelnuts out of personal preference. Yum!!! I will definitely be making this again!

  6. So there’s this website… « Not Just Home Economics Says:

    March 13th, 2009 at 4:37 pm

    [...] me going.  She lives in Brooklyn, so much of her focus is on New York City food life.  And this recipe sounds especially good….I might make it [...]

  7. Sophia Eichmann Says:

    May 6th, 2010 at 7:54 am

    I served this dish and it was simply perfect. I am far from exactly what you would refer to as an expert cook, and never do get pleasure from tricky directions that leave me stressed out in the kitchen. This is very easy and delicious, excellent accompanied by a glass of Burgundy. Thank you.

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